Tuesday, May 27, 2008

We are often asked about the microbial populations in our probiotics. Marketing methods have followed the "more is better" mentality, keeping people from looking at more of the quality and diversity. This has a lot to do with the fact that as the diversity of microbes increases, it is more difficult to follow the standard "scientific method", which is based on isolated variables, not compounded effects. We can use the same argument for why the EPA and the FDA do not remove various toxins from the markets because they are unable to determine the compounded effects of these toxins.

Effective Microorganisms™ products, which are the know how of the Japanese Headquarters, EM Research Organization, are complex microbial cultures consisting of microbes from three or four genus. The manufacturers (currently 54 licensed facilities around the world) are clear that focusing on the population counts are not as important as focusing on the diversity of the microbes. If EM•1® Microbial Inoculant or PRO EM•1® Daily Probiotic Cleanse were to have one less genus of microbes, these products would function like other probiotics on the market and the results would not be as significant.

Other factors to look at when considering EM Technology™-based probiotic cultures is that they are all naturally fermented and body temperature. This means the finished products are raw, containing 40 trace minerals, amino acids (up to 18), various organic acid compounds (see previous blog on alkalinity), nearly 100 types of enzymes, B complex vitamins, Vitamin A (in the form of Retonin, the form ready for absorption by the body), plus the live microbes.

Any microbiologist will agree with the statement that freeze drying of microbes also causes some form of cellular damage, which can greatly affect performance of the microbes. This is the main reason most probiotics on the market contain billions of cfu/ml. It is necessary to use tremendous numbers of "weaker" microbes to get the effects of "stronger" microbes.

Lastly, consider that one microbe produces one type of enzyme, one type of vitamin, and/or one type of organic acid. When there is not a variety (diversity), the nutrients and digestive aids are not supplied. This is another reason why the benefits of Effective Microorganisms™ products are so great and varied.

Effective Microorganisms™ probiotic cultures are stable at room temperatures for at least one year. They are sold in liquid medium and are alive (stable) so they are ready for action when used. And, they produce various beneficial, bio-available compounds for the user. Bio-availability is a key factor in choosing a supplement because it is ready to use for the body. There is no conversion process that the body much go through.

Friday, May 02, 2008

Alternative health care practitioners are telling people to focus on an alkaline diet as lower acid blood levels are indicators of sickness and are often associated with people who have cancers. This can be confusing for people who are new to this philosophy and they tend to avoid foods that have a low pH because they think ALL foods with a low pH are "acidic". When people talk about alkaline and acidic foods, they shouldn't interpret this directly with the food's pH reading. It has been determined by the minerals in that particular food are more of a reason why the food is considered alkaline or acidic.

Foods that have an "acidic" function contain more electro-negative elements such as chlorine (Cl-), phosphate, sulfur, etc. Food that have an "alkaline" function contain more electro-positive elements such as sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc. The common method used to determine this is to burn the food at an extremely high temperature and measure the mineral content found in its ashes.For example, an orange itself is acidic, but because it contains high levels of calcium, potassium, etc, it is actually an "alkaline" foods. This is because calcium and potassium in oranges will help make your blood alkaline. PRO EM•1® Daily Probiotic Cleanse should be considered an alkaline food as it provides organic acids that are electro-positive and, therefore, raise blood pH to a slightly alkaline state.

Water ionizers are also very common today and people are spending thousands of dollars on them to drink highly alkaline water. Some theories on this are that the body's positive feedback systems will cause the body to secrete more acids to restore homeostasis. If the body is already acidic, this will not happen. The Standard American Diet (SAD), which is high in acidic foods and lacking in fermented and raw foods, is one of the main reasons people in the US tend to have lower blood pH. Therefore, drinking alkaline water would be beneficial if people are on this type of diet. Water is very important to the diet and proper body function. We suggest that people combine this alkaline water with a second stage treatment using our EM-X® Ceramics in the reservoirs. Our most common ceramics are the 35mm Pipe ceramic and the EM-X® Ringstone®.